31 October in Indian and World History is celebrated, observed, and remembered for various reasons. 31 October is the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Narinder Singh Kapany, G. Madhavan Nair, and Sarbananda Sonowal.
31 October is also observed as the death anniversary of Sachin Dev Burman, Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi, and Amrita Pritam.
Birth Anniversary
31 October in Indian history is celebrated as the birth anniversary of the following personalities:
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (31 October, 1875 – 15 December, 1950) was a famous freedom fighter and the first Home Minister of independent India. He is famous by the nickname of ‘Sardar Patel’. Sardar Patel was an Indian barrister and famous politician. He was one of the leaders of the ‘Indian National Congress’ during India’s freedom struggle.
Narinder Singh Kapany (31 October 1926 – 4 December 2020) is an Indian-American physicist known for his work in fiber optics. He was named by Fortune as one of seven ‘Unsung Heroes’ in their ‘Businessmen of the Century Issue’ (1999). He is also known as the ‘Father of Fiber Optics’. The term fiber optics was coined by Narinder Singh Kapani Kapani in 1956. He is a former IOFS officer.
G. Madhavan Nair is one of the prominent and respected scientists of India. He was the former Chairman and Secretary of the Space Department of ‘ISRO’ (Indian Space Research Organisation). Their focus has always been on achieving self-reliance in high-technology areas and harnessing the benefits of space technology for national development, especially targeting the needs of the rural and poor sections of society.
Sarbananda Sonowal (English: Sarbananda Sonowal, born: October 31, 1962, Dibrugarh, Assam) is an Indian politician who has been the 14th Chief Minister of Assam. Presently he has been made ‘Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways’ and ‘Minister of AYUSH’ in the cabinet of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sarbananda Sonowal previously served as the Assam State President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from 2012 to 2014 and again from 2015 to 2016. He was born on October 31, 1962 in Dibrugarh, Assam.
Read More: 30 October in Indian and World History
Death Anniversary
31 October in Indian history is observed as the death anniversary of the following personalities:
Sachin Dev Burman (1 October 1906 – 31 October 1975) was a famous composer and singer of Hindi and Bengali films. Sachin Dev Burman Indian musician, who has left an indelible impact on the Hindi film industry.
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) not only dominated Indian politics but also left an impact on the horizon of world politics. Mrs. Indira Gandhi was born in the Nehru family. Indira Gandhi was the only daughter of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India.
Amrita Pritam (31 August 1919 – October 31, 2005) was a famous poet, novelist, and essayist, who is considered the best poet of the Punjabi language of the 20th century. His popularity is equal across the border in Pakistan. He ruled the Punjabi world for six decades. Amrita Pritam has written about 100 books in total, which also includes her famous autobiography ‘Raseedi Ticket’.
Read More: 29 October in Indian and World History
Notable events on 31 October in Indian and World History
31 October 1759 – 100 people died in an earthquake in Safed, Palestine.
31 October 1864 – Nevada became the 36th state of America.
31 October 1889 – Acharya Narendra Dev, a prominent socialist leader, was born.
31 October 1905 – Revolutionary demonstration in St. Petersburg, America.
31 October 1908 – The fourth Olympic Games conclude in London.
31 October 1914 – Britain and France declared war against Turkey.
31 October 1920 – Central European country Romania captured Bessarabia in Eastern Europe.
31 October 1953 – Television broadcasting begins in Belgium.
31 October 1956 – Britain and France began bombing Egypt to reopen the Suez Canal.
31 October 1959 – The Soviet Union and Egypt signed an agreement to build the Aswan Dam on the Nile River.
31 October 1960 – About ten thousand people died due to cyclonic storm in the Bay of Bengal.
31 October 1966 – India’s famous swimmer Mihir Sen swam across the Panama Canal.
31 October 1982 – Pope John Paul II became the first bishop to visit Spain.
31 October 1984- Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was shot dead by her bodyguards. After this Rajiv Gandhi became the 9th Prime Minister of India.
31 October 1989 – Turgat Ozal was elected President of Türkiye.
31 October 1996 – Approval of 65 countries required to implement the Chemical Weapons Ban Treaty was obtained.
Important Days
National Unity Day is celebrated in India on October 31st each year. It commemorates the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, who played a crucial role in the country’s struggle for independence and later in the integration of the princely states into the Indian Union. Sardar Patel, also known as the Iron Man of India, was instrumental in unifying the various princely states after independence, thus consolidating the country into what it is today.